Iowa City-based ACT will launch a new product designed to help improve workforce readiness this January, as part of a strategic partnership between the company and the International Youth Foundation (IYF), a global nonprofit dedicated to positive youth development. Called ACT Tessera Workforce, the product will focus on measuring and improving workplace essential skills, also known as social and emotional learning (SEL), noncognitive or soft skills. It will be part
December 26, 2018
Broadband grant applications available soon from state
Applications for $1.3 million in broadband grants will soon be available through Iowa’s Office of the Chief Information Officer, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced on Friday. The grant program allows communication service providers, including telecommunication companies and municipalities, to apply for up to 15 percent of their broadband project costs in targeted service areas to improve broadband access for Iowans. Citizens and service providers can check the targeted services area map
December 20, 2018
Denim goes international with SBC CoLab partnership in London
A Des Moines insuretech startup is crossing the pond to new clients, thanks to Denim’s new partnership with London-based Startupbootcamp CoLab InsurTech (SBC CoLab). Through the CoLab program, SBC serves as a mediator between startups already providing services to clients, and corporations seeking smaller partners to address technical needs within the company. SBC does not invest in the tech companies that join the CoLab program, but it will connect Denim
December 19, 2018
Deere launches Startup Collaborator program
Deere & Company’s Intelligent Solutions Group is launching a new startup collaboration program to build relationships with tech companies seeking to reach John Deere customers. The Startup Collaborator is a partnership initiative to allow Deere and startup companies to test new technologies with customers and dealers, without a more formal business relationship, Deere & Company announced in a press release. “Our focus for the Startup Collaborator is specifically on startups
December 18, 2018
Ryan Schaap named 2019 Chairman of TAI Board of Directors
Ryan Schapp, Chairman of the Technology Association of Iowa Board of Directors. Photo provided The Technology Association of Iowa announced it has appointed Ryan Schaap as its new Chairman of the Board, effective Jan. 1. Schaap is the Chief Information Officer of TAI member company Wells Enterprises, maker of Blue Bunny ice cream and based in Le Mars. Schaap has served as a TAI board member for the last several
December 18, 2018
The stinky business of catching porch pirates
Holiday porch thieves: beware, or at least refrain from stealing at an engineer’s house. Former NASA engineer Mark Rober was told by police they couldn’t do anything to track down the package stolen on security footage from his own porch, so Rober, who already has a popular YouTube channel, decided to over-engineer his revenge with an innocuous package, glitter, fart spray, wide-angle cameras and GPS tracking. The video of cold-blooded
December 18, 2018
Documentary chronicles work of Cedar Rapids company on Apollo mission space communication
The pioneering work done by employees of the former Collins Radio (now Collins Aerospace) of Cedar Rapids in the 1960s will be the subject of a documentary premiering this week, reports Radio Iowa. “Moon Talk” tells the story of the technology developed at Collins that enabled astronauts aboard the Apollo 8 Moon mission to speak with Mission Control. Apollo 8 launched 50 years ago this week, on Dec. 21, 1968.
December 17, 2018
ICR Iowa announces new ‘learning hub’ website for area careers
ICR Iowa has launched ICRfuture.org, advertised as a new learning hub offering information on careers, salaries, internships and more catering toward Iowa City-Cedar Rapids (ICR), reports the Corridor Business Journal. The website is a project of the ICR Future Coalition, a group of 70-plus educators, employers and nonprofit professionals focused on the Corridor’s future workforce.
December 17, 2018
Des Moines diocese reports theft after cyber scam intercepts $45k
An online phishing scam resulted in $45,880.90 stolen from the Diocese of Des Moines after the scammer impersonated a diocesan employee requesting a funds transfer, the diocese reported in a statement on Monday. Law enforcement are investigating after the Dec. 13 incident. No diocesan staff are expected of malfeasance, Bishop Richard Pates said. The diocese said most of the funds were expected to be recovered through insurance. Cybercriminals last targeted
December 13, 2018
2018 Leaders Survey: Venture capital in central Iowa
In the seventh year of the Business Record’s annual Leaders Survey, the Business Record asked local leaders whether they believe Central Iowa businesses had adequate access to venture capital. It’s a snapshot of our wider concerns – the survey, released in print and in daily e-newsletter snapshots, checks the pulse on some of Des Moines’ largest concerns through the eyes of its business leaders. View the 2018 Leaders Survey online
